


We should take a walk and look at all the flowers (I'm alright with a slow burn)

by unburnttkhaleesi



Category: The Haunting of Bly Manor (TV)
Genre: F/F, ah idk what else to tag im so tired, and gets very defensive about them, au pair jamie, but nothing too serious, cause screw him, dani loves her animals, farm au, farm hand dani, jamie is a literal ray of sunshine that comes into their lives, mentions of gas lighting, modern day AU, peter is mentioned but never seen, plot used with permission from an awesome tumblr blog, tad of homophobia, there is a bit of a violent act against animals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:48:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27599149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unburnttkhaleesi/pseuds/unburnttkhaleesi
Summary: Dani Clayton has been working at Bly Ranch for seven years and in those seven years, she became a part of this mismatched family of misfits, but never let anything distract her. However things change after Charlotte Wingrave passes a black cloud of bad luck descends over the ranch until Dominic hires an Au Pair, Jamie Taylor all the way from London who becomes the actual bit of sunshine and distraction that the family and Dani needs.
Relationships: Dani Clayton/Jamie
Comments: 6
Kudos: 92





	We should take a walk and look at all the flowers (I'm alright with a slow burn)

**Author's Note:**

> So it only took me a week, week and a half? But 19 pages later and tons of editing and rewriting, (there still might be mistakes so sorry if you catch any) and listening to slow burn on repeat comes this. This plot comes from this lovely tumblr and tumblr post all credit goes to her:
> 
> https://jamiexdani.tumblr.com/post/634237544144551936/but-wait-what-if-the-flipped-thobm-was-set-in
> 
> So got check it out and I hope you all enjoy! Also set in Georgia cause I am so proud that you all went blue.

It’s raining when she wakes up.

The sound of raindrops on the top of the metal roof of her trailer is what ends up waking her up. Normally Dani loved the rain, she loved getting a cup of coffee and watch it fall. However, she hates it on days like this, days where she knew that the humidity would hang in the august air making her skin so unpleasantly sticky as she went about her chores. She would like it better if it was a weekend, that way she could enjoy the last few weeks of summer in Georgia before they’d have to go to work to get the crops and animals ready for winter.

She gives a sigh as she checks her phone, five am. She should get up, eat and start the day, but she feels lazy today and Dani wouldn’t be lying if she said she wasn’t trying to avoid today. Today was the day the Au Pair started. Dominic sounded a bit excited on the phone when he explained the details. Who was this woman? Some sort of Mary Poppins She sighed and ran a hand through her long dark hair, Dani knew the children hadn’t been the same since Charlotte passed. That is one thing Dani couldn’t scrub from her mind. Finding Miles who found her. She shudders at the memory. But she moves along, making her coffee and breakfast and dressing for the day.

The rain had let up in the hour it took her to get ready and left a fresh scent to the quiet land around it. She walks out of her trailer, hair tie in her mouth as she pulls her hair back and walks past her co-worker’s trailer, giving the metal walls a harsh bang as she secures her ponytail. “C’mon Bex, the chicken’s ain’t gonna feed themselves.” She yells as she walks up the dirt road towards the barn. It was nice of Dominic, allowing them both to live on the farm. It was easy for Dani who hadn’t been a fan of going into town. Bly was a nice town, the people weren’t bad, just nosy. She couldn’t walk through without someone stopping her asking about her past, why she ‘don’t have a man, you’re such a peach after all’

Dani wasn’t stupid though, she’d lived in Georgia her whole life, but left her hometown and settled here after she delt with some unfortunate events. She knew judgement her whole life, dealt with it as a kid. Dominic was good to look past that, even if Dominic was dealing with his own shit now after poor Charlotte passed. He barely came by now; he had even been so affectionately nicknamed by the cook as their ‘phantom boss’. He’d call once a week, check up on the kids and then send some money to keep them feed and now, he was sending a new nanny to take care of them.

She takes to her chores that she can do on her own first. Leading the horses out to stretch their legs and graze, saddling up hers and Rebecca’s so they could drive the cattle out to pasture. Of course, Rebecca is late, and the chickens are hungry, so she feeds them, mucks out the horse’s stalls as she fetches new hay. Even tossing a fresh barrel over the fence so the horses could enjoy a treat.

Dani enjoys taking the cows to pasture, watching the sun rise in the sky as they go along, even if Rebecca is still talking about Peter fuckin’ Quint. She remembered the first time she had the upmost pleasure of meeting the shithead. He was relentless, flirting at any chance he could get asking her out, hell he even told her that her job wasn’t a good place for a woman. He backed down a little once Dani had to spell it out for him and then completely backed down when Owen knocked him on his ass. They weren’t friends, hell no, she hated him. She hated what he did to the woman that she called her best friend and how Rebecca forgave him every single time.

Dani could easily pick up when Rebecca spoke to Peter, because this is how their mornings would start out. Her going on about how he’d been through a lot and maybe if he got help then he’d be a good man. It made Dani scoff. Rebecca didn’t know the half of it, how Peter would mock therapy, how Peter told Dani that he could ‘fuck the gay’ out of her, right in front of the kids. How he managed to woo the woman beside her and break her in a span of three months. Dani remembered how she checked in on Rebecca every morning after Peter had some sort of mental breakdown, accused her of cheating and yet, here she was, still trying to fix him and figure him out.

It made her wonder that maybe it was Rebecca that needed counseling, how she was a victim of trauma, of gas lighting and maybe it would stop her from running into his arms every single time he showed his face at the ranch with his gifts and honeyed words.

She was too pretty, too kind and way too good for Peter. Dani had heard their arguments and watched Rebecca come back every single time. It remined her of her parents, how toxic they were for each other and it made Dani defensive of people, of relationships. People weren’t worth it.

“Did you hear that this new nanny is from England?” Rebecca comment brings her from her thoughts. “Won’t be so bad, maybe it’ll do the kids good. Flora is acting like a 40-year-old and Miles has been- there is something wrong with him.”

Of course, she heard about the new Nanny, it’s why she was hesitant with actually going to work today. Dominic had told them about her. This woman, Jamie Taylor in her late 20s used to teach back home and came to the United States to chase the American Dream, whatever the fuck that meant. “At least Quint isn’t fucking here to screw this up.” She looks over at Rebecca. “How have you been dealing with it? He’s stopped stalking you?”

Rebecca is silent, but gripping the reigns of the horse tightly. “He wasn’t all bad.” She tries and catches Dani’s glare. “C’mon Dani, you knew him better than I did! He was a good guy.”

“And he gas light you, Bex.” Dani points out. “The state that he left you in?” She shakes her head. “And he still has that fuckin’ job in the city. You can do so much better, you know, that right?”

There is a beat and Rebecca sighs. “My god, Dani, one day a woman is going to be so lucky to have you.”

She is silent the way to bringing the cows into their large pen and Dani rides back to the ranch. Rebecca can take watch and she’d send one of the younger hands down to help her out later.

When she gets back, she is greeted by Flora Wingrave and a blonde woman leaning on the fence as the sheep crowd around them. That must be the new Au Pair, she’s in a floral top that had ridden up a bit, exposing a bit of pale skin to the Georgia sun, a pair of blue jeans and long blonde hair that had been swept back into a perfect pony tail. She was pretty, Dani thought- maybe too pretty and from what she learned, being too pretty was dangerous, lead to heart beak and Dani was no stranger to that. So, she dismounts her horse and leads the animal right past them, giving the Au Pair a quick once over. Enough to take her heart shaped face and plump lips that surrounded a perfect smile. No, no way was Dani getting invested again.

She feels eyes on her back as she removes the saddle and bridle from her horse as before gets a brush to work the dirt out of it’s coat. She looks out of the corner of her eye to see Flora still jabbering away but the Au Pair wasn’t paying attention to the child anymore, no she was looking at her. It was odd, the way the other woman was now looking at her- maybe, maybe she just wanted an introduction. So, Dani takes a breath. “Hey, booboo!” Dani call over her shoulder, making the Au Pair glance away quickly and Flora who actually stop talking. “Who’s your new friend?”

“Oh!” Flora hops down from the fence, rainboot squelching in the mud. “Oh! I’m sorry, Miss. Dani this is Miss. Taylor. She’s our new Au Pair! All the way from London, isn’t that awesome!” Flora excitedly rambles. “And she’s going to be our teacher when school starts! And she even has an accent and-”

Dani catches the Au Pair’s eyes as Flora goes on about how ‘amazingly wonderful’ she is and smirks just as the Au Pair’s pale cheeks turn pink and she looks back over at Flora.

“Miss. Dani, is that the new horse you were talking about at lunch yesterday?” Flora suddenly asks, gaining her attention. “May I ride her?”

Dani looks back at the creamy white mustang who had been politely waiting with her snout on her shoulder. She hums a bit as she pats her nose. “Sorry hun, but no.” Dani lets her down and Flora groans. “She’s still a bit fidgety and ornery, if you get bucked, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“She’s beautiful.” Dani’s eyes flick over to the Au Pair who had seemed to walk a step closer. “And she looks like she really trusts you.” She smiles softly at her. “Can’t say I blame her.” She adds with a nervous laugh. “You seem to know what you are doing.”

Dani looked her up and down again. The way this woman was dressed, how she kept her hair and even the bit of makeup she had on her face, not that she really needed that- she was beautiful enough, distractingly so. However, it looked like she never stepped foot on a ranch before. “Thanks, but right now she’s trusts me to let her roam for a bit.” Dani had to get out of this conversation, whether Jamie knew it or not, she was flirting- or maybe Dani was looking to much into it. “So, I’m just gonna-” She jerks her thumb towards the fenced in area that contained the other horses. Then Dani finds herself puzzled because the Au Pair looks a bit disappointed. Weird. “But I’ll see you ladies at lunch? Alright?”

“Owen is making Mac and grilled Cheese sandwiches!” Flora enthusiastically explains.

“Doesn’t that sound mighty magical.” Dani reaches forward and ruffles the little girl’s hair. “I wonder who requested that?”

Flora gives a giggle as she tries to settle her hair back down, doing her best to sound innocent. “Wasn’t me!” Her attention is quickly taken by the voice of Hannah Grose who was standing at the edge of the large wrap around porch. “Coming Mrs. Grose, come on Miss. Taylor! Mrs. Grose gets grumpy if we don’t come when asked.”

Dani raises a brow as she watches Flora run off, her pink boots covered in the brown mud. “It’s nice to meet you, Miss. Taylor.”

“Oh, you can call me Jamie.” The other woman rushes out, her accent making her jumbled words sound so smooth.

“Flora Grace Wingrave!” Hannah’s shrill voice rings out and Dani stifles a laugh, knowing the little girl was bold enough to walk into the house with those muddy shoes.

“I guess that’s your cue?” Dani asks and Jamie sighs, a shy smile on her face as she meets her eyes. “See you at lunch, Jamie Taylor.” Dani adds with a wink, barely missing the goofy smile that crossed the Au Pair’s pretty lips as she turned around to lead her horse out to graze. She smirks to herself as she hears the retreating footsteps of the Au Pair.

She turns her head slightly to watch the other woman walk off, because there was no harm in looking, right? Dani focus though on the clenched hands and fast paced walk, wondering if maybe, just maybe there was more about this woman that met the eye.

Which Dani does catch through the rest of the day, this Jamie Taylor and her lingering gazes. She catches it during lunch, Owen is explaining his background in cooking. His time in Paris and Hannah smiles proudly. However, the rest of the makeshift family picks up on the energy. He makes this silent oh before he goes back to his food and the kids exchange a look when Dani meet’s Jamie’s gaze, giving her a crooked grin as the Au Pair clears her throat and turns her attention back towards her food.

The rest of the day goes off without a hitch and ends with her and Rebecca leading the cows back to the barn and making sure the rest of the animals were secure. “I would get a good night’s rest. If I was you.” Rebecca tells her as they check the stalls. “Gotta finish that new fence, its gonna take all day.” Rebecca sighs and Dani nods. “And then we have to fix what we already put together.”

Dani’s brow furrows as steals a glance over to the porch to see Jamie playing a board game with the kids. “Why, it looked fine the other day.”

“Yeah well, Miles and his shitty friends got to it.” Rebecca slowly says.

“What do you mean by they got to it.”

Now Rebecca looks nervous and rubs the back of her neck. “They uh- might have set it on fire.”

“They set it on fire, are you fucking kidding me? I’ll kill that little fucker I swear!” She growls and then whirls on her. “Oh, lemme guess did he use the lighter that your shit of an ex gave to him?”

“Christ, calm the hell down, I put it out and took the lighter away from him.” She explains. “And he was scared shitless about telling you, I see why. Though murder might not be the best way to get to Miss. Taylors heart. I’ve seen the way she’s been making cow eyes at you, she’s not that subtle about it.”

Dani’s hands are shaking in rage. Ever since Miles met those shitheads from town, his attitude had changed. She knew the kid hadn’t been right since his mom died, but he was just getting worse. “Then you know what, he’s gonna help replace what he destroyed.”

“Good luck getting the nanny to agree to that, she’ll just spoil them like everyone else does.”

And God, does Dani hope she is wrong.

It turns out, that Mile’s cruel jokes doesn’t stop at the fence fire that Rebecca and the other farmhands kept from her because that night, Dani is awoken by panicked yelling coming from the old farmhouse. She shoots from her bed, pulls on her boots before pushing her screen door open. She hears the screen door from Rebecca’s slam open as well and her footfalls behind her. They share a look of concern before their fast-paced walk turns into a full paced run when they see the door of the farmhouse fly open and the new Au Pair running into the night. “I’ll handle her, check on the kids.” Dani instructs and meets Jamie halfway.

The woman’s eyes are bloodshot, a sheet of sweat covers her head to toe and shaking like a leaf. She breathes heavily, hyperventilating hand on her chest and Dani approaches slowly. “Hey, hey.” Dani keeps her distance, speaking in a calm tone. She doesn’t touch her because she knows that is the last thing she wants; it would be the last thing Dani would want in that state. Dani catches her eyes, hazel meeting blue and the other woman shudders, trying to catch her breath, glancing back at the house. “It’s fine.” Dani states. “Rebecca is checking on the kids.”

“Th- the kids,” She sputters. “Miles, he- I’m sorry, I shouldn’t- I should-”

Dani’s brow furrows, and she breaks eye contact with the Au Pair for just a moment to see Miles and Flora on the porch. Rebecca angrily pointing a finger at the nanny and then back to the house. Of course, it was fucking Miles. “Hey, no. Don’t apologize.” She glances up again to see Hannah running out of the house in a robe with Owen right behind her. Jamie though, she’s still shaky, still visibly upset and if there was one thing she was good at was talking people down. “Kids, they can drive you crazy. It’s why I prefer animals. They can’t talk back, appreciate the little things in life, I mean worse thing an animal can do is what? Buck you off their backs, charge at you- maybe bite you if you piss ‘em off a bit. You ever been bitten by a horse?”

Dani asks and Jamie shakes her head. “Fuckin’ hurts like hell, even got a scar to prove it, see?” Dani lifts her tank top to show her the pink scar on her side and Jamie lets out a wet laugh. “Look, I’m not that good with kids, but kids and animals have something in common, they are easily molded by whatever trauma they’ve been through. That horse that bit me? Well he hated people, had a right- people were shitty to him. But biting me wasn’t an excusable behavior. Just like those two? She points towards the kids, they’ve been through more than any kid should, but it doesn’t excuse whatever it is they did to you.” Jamie’s eyes bashfully meet Dani’s. Her breathing, while still shallow had evened out. “It’s gonna be rough, they’re gonna test you, but you? Yeah, you look like you have your ducks in a row. You’ll do great, seriously you are gonna make a difference.”

Jamie sniffles, takes another deep breath and nods her head. “Thank you.” She whispers.

Dani gives her a nod and then glances over at the house again; Hannah was taking Flora back inside while Miles slowly trailed in after her. “If you ever need to talk, my place is right there.” She points out her trailer. “Just knock, doesn’t matter what time.” She reaches out, pats her arm. “You’re good, Sunshine.”

She walks Jamie back to the house, make sure she gets in alright before her and Rebecca leave. “All Miles did was lock her in a closet. Seemed a little dramatic for a reaction like that, don’t you think?”

Dani rolls her eyes at him, scoffing. “We can’t judge, we don’t know what she’s been through, me and you? Of all people should know that.”

She wakes up the next morning at the crack of dawn, showers, dresses and eats. Today she’s mentally prepared to do the whole damn fence in one day, but is surprised when she gets closer to the house to see Rebecca standing on the dirt road, a smirk on her face. She’s about to ask her why she isn’t getting started when she see’s Miles, Flora and the Au Pair already working on the fence. Hannah is next to her with her mouth hanging open in shock.

“Is she-” Dani begins to ask and Hannah nods.

“Seems like this one is putting them to work.” Hannah affirms. “Just for locking her in a closet, seems sort of harsh.”

Rebecca lets out a bellow of a laugh. “I don’t know about you, but it’s about time someone puts those kids in their place.”

Dani smirks, fully agreeing with Rebecca. “She’s gotta point, Hannah. You clean up after them, Owen feeds them but this one? Miss. Taylor has them doing hard labor.” She chuckles. “That shit works, well it worked on me- one can only hope it works on them.

Dani enlists the two other farm hands to help, they’re teens and have the stamina. She now sits on a rocker on the porch watching them work with an iced tea in her hand with Hannah, Rebecca and Owen. “So, thoughts on the new Au Pair?”

“Dani!” Hannah jests. “Don’t be a gossip!”

“It’s just Christian concern, Hannah!” Dani defends, one of her dirty work boots propped up on the chair. “She’s pretty, maybe a bit too pretty, what do you think?”

“Well I know one thing.” Owen buts in. “I think, no- I have a good feeling that she thinks _you’re_ pretty, Dani. She was asking about you earlier.”

Rebecca nods her head, giggling as she taps her foot. “Mm, I mean look at her, making those cow eyes at you all day. She’s smitten.”

Dani tries to hide her blush, her bit of teasing seemed to have bit her in the butt. “I’m gonna go give her a break, she’ll burn in that sun.”

“Smitten!” Owen coughs into his hand, the three of them howling in laughter when Dani flips him off, holding back her own smirk.

Jamie is glad for the break, she could blame the heat from the late summer sun that caused her to turn pink with Dani came down from the porch. She had butterflies ever since yesterday when she saw her riding in on that literal white horse, she liked her laid back attitude, that slight southern twang in her voice- the sun kissed skin and the dark hair that was swept up in a messy ponytail and when she winked at her, those butterflies swarmed.

Even last night when Miles had locked her in that small closet for what felt like days, there she was, in a short pair of pajama shorts and a tank top calming her down. She was nothing like Eddie who would be quite callous when she had panic attack, who would grab her and hold her when she didn’t want to be held.

Dani kept her distance, talked to her, distracted her until her breathing went back to normal. She made her laugh and only touched her, the faintest of touch when she came down.

It was true to say that Jamie was anxious most of the time, but Dani made her nervous in a good way. She found herself beaming as the farmhand made her way down the porch and convinced her in a smooth voice to take a breather- but the kids had to keep working. All the time it was butterflies, a smile or a stolen glance, a wink. She would feel like a schoolgirl. That’s what Dani caused, she made her feel the way she should have felt with her now dead fiancé, they way her friends described what it was like to actually fall for someone. The general excitement to see them, how they could make you swoon with a simple smile and how your heart was supposed to go a mile a minute. “Bex!” She hears the farm hand call. “Let’s go, breaks over!”

She did as the farm hand commanded and occupied the rocker that she had sat in, watching how the other woman’s arm muscles flexed when she picked up one of the heavy wooden posts and hauled it with the woman who had always seemed to around her. Jamie noticed they teased each other a lot and last thing she wanted was to have read Dani wrong.

“Are they together?” Jamie finally asks, Owen and Hannah giving her a curious look. “Dani and Rebecca.”

Owen chokes on his drink and Hannah starts laughing, hitting Owen’s back to give him air. “Heavens no!” She’s still laughing loudly, Owen now joining in with a horse laugh. “Rebecca could only wish to have a catch as Dani, said so herself.”

“I’m just asking because they seem to always be around each other, and they seem close and Dani is- well she is-” Jamie innocently explains.

Owen wipes a tear from his eye. “They’re best friends.” Owen explains. “They have a long history with each other, it’s Dani that got Becca the job. They’re like sisters, they look out for each other.” He goes on. “Almost stopped talking when Peter Quint came into the picture.”

“Peter Quint?” Jamie repeats and then nods her head. “Isn’t he Dominic’s assistant? I met him in Atlanta.”

Hannah nods while refilling her iced tea. “And Rebecca’s on again off again boyfriend. He hates Dani and Dani hates him, once I came out of the house one night after hearing a gunshot. Rebecca was sobbing in the mud, Peter was looming over her and there is Dani with a smoking shotgun. He fled after that and it’s been months since we last saw him. I don’t know what happened, they wouldn’t tell me, but I think that warning shot scared the hell out of him. He learned that night that Dani doesn’t mess around.”

“Rebecca hasn’t been the same since.” Owen quietly comments. “She acts like she’s alright, but we know that she’s not.”

“But then there is Dani Clayton, forever picking up the pieces,” Hannah pointed towards the brunette woman who had Flora in her arms, showing the young girl how to hammer the post in. “So much so, that she forgets about herself sometimes. Girl deserves some happiness herself.”

“She’s to busy making sure we’re all alright, she’s just used to takin’ care of others.” He stands up from the porch swing he had been sharing with Hannah, giving a stretch and a yawn. “But who knows, maybe she’ll warm up to someone.”

Jamie finds her gaze wandering over to Dani who had a big grin on her face as she swayed along with Miles to whatever song had been playing on the radio as they worked, the little boy giving a large smile as Dani took off her hat and put it on his head. Jamie knew what Miles did to the fence, she heard the other two farm hands talk about it and how Dani would beat the living shit out of him, but here she was, sweet as can be with the boy. She figures that she gets it, she gets why the boy is the way he and Jamie? Well Jamie just falls harder.

However, she does see a different side of her that afternoon. She has the children in the classroom, going over their summer reading when Dani storms in, red as a tomato and points a finger at Mile. “You!” She growls and Jamie deflates. “I swear to god you little sh-”

“Oh no,” She murmurs. How could those two go from being playful and getting along to now Dani wanting to actually murder a child. So, she jumps between them before Dani could get any closer. “Hey, hey!” Jamie easily puts on her teacher voice watching as Dani’s nostrils flare in anger. “Hey, he’s just a kid!”

Dani scoffs. “Yeah, just a kid- I swear to Christ. Miles, you better wipe that smirk off your face before I-”

“Enough.” Jamie commands causing the ranch hand to meet her eyes. She sees the rage, but she’s not backing down. Dani’s chest heaves in anger and she doesn’t break eye contact. She figures, from the children’s point of view, that it must look like something off the nature channel until Dani breaks and shakes her head.

“You know what, fine.” Dani spits, but gently takes Jamie’s hand. “You don’t think it’s a big deal, then come with me and prepare yourself for some Jeffery ‘fuckin’ Dahmer shit. Don’t you move.” She points directly at Miles before she leads Jamie out of the house and towards the chicken coop.

The hens seemed distressed as they grow closer, their feathers ruffled and their squawking filling the air and finally Jamie sees why Dani is so upset, why she is so beyond pissed off at the little boy upstairs. Littered on the ground were eggs, fertilized eggs, smashed onto the ground and the unborn chicks scattered all around. “You see what I mean.” Dani says lowly. “That kid, he needs to stop seeing those friends of his and he needs a Phycologist. This shit, it’s not normal. It’s not that boys will be boys bullshit, god I fucking hate that saying because it just makes men think that they can get away with whatever they want. Miles was good, Miles can be good. I don’t want him to end up like-”

“-Peter Quint?” Jamie finishes and notices a shift in Dani’s eyes.

“Yeah.” Dani swallows “See, the thing is that these eggs were so close to hatching. We do have a certain way of getting rid of the duds or taking care of the chicks that don’t make it, but this? I’m sorry for getting mad at you and lashing out, you didn’t deserve it, but It’s wrong animals are- they’re important to me and-”

“It’s okay.” Jamie assures her. “Really, it’s okay. I’ll talk to him and I’ll call Dominic and let him know what happened. It’s okay, Dani. You have every right to be angry, you know that right?”

Suddenly the farm hand gets a wryly look on her face. “Are you using the teacher tone with me right now?” She asks and Jamie flushes. “Look,” She sighs as she runs a hand through her soft wavy hair. “Can we go back to when you were losing it and I was calming you down?”

Jamie smiles. “We can take shifts of freaking out and calming each other down, deal?”

“Deal.” Dani winks.

Dani doesn’t come to lunch that day, Rebecca explains as she sits down that she’s still cooling down and there was no telling what she’d actually do if she saw Miles. It had been a stressful day, trying to call Mr. Wingrave, getting Peter Quint who laughed when she told him what Miles did and the mention of him getting help. Jamie hated how that man belittled her over the phone, telling her that boys will be boys, but he’ll pass the message along to Dominic. Jamie understood why everyone at the house cringed at his name now, he was a pompous ass. However now her gaze fell to Dani’s empty spot at the table and then back at Rebecca who mouths. ‘Barn’

Jamie clears her throat, getting Owen’s attention. “Do you have a basket or something? I’m sure Dani is hungry; she’s been working all day.”

She doesn’t miss the look that Owen and Hannah share before Owen points out a basket above the cabinet and tells her. “Good luck, Dani is a bit unbearable when she is in a mood.” He grins. “But I’m sure she won’t be that way for you.”

“She does call her sunshine after all.” Hannah hums, sharing a grin with Rebecca.

Jamie’s cheeks burn as she quickly packs the lunch up and then gives Hannah a panicked look. “It’s fine, I’ll watch the kids. You go take care of our grumpy ranch hand.”

She finds her in the barn just like Rebecca said she would, but in a stall with a scrawny little calf. Dani is leaning against a wall, feeding a bottle to the fuzzy brown animal. Jamie approaches carefully, picking up the tune she is strangely singing to the animal and weirdly enough the calf seems to enjoy it. “Hey,” Jamie softly greets, and Dani looks over. Jamie had only known the ranch hand for two days, but she had never seen her so at peace. “Is that a Bob Dylan song?” Jamie asks and Dani nods. “You have a great voice.”

Dani’s cheeks are stained red, seemingly embarrassed that she was caught in the act. “Ain’t no Dolly Parton, but the babies like it. Sooths them.”

Jamie nods. “Where’s its mom?”

A hint of sadness appears on the Ranch Hand’s face before she fights it off. “You know we are a humane farm, right? Well this little lady here came from a not so humane farm. It’s daddy was set out for slaughter and it’s Mama died of an infection. The farm was shut down for health concerns and a friend of mine told me about some of the animals that were up for auction. I managed to get some of the babies. Dolly right here and the three little lambs, Pixie, Tink, and Luna are the few that I snagged up before they could be sent off somewhere not so great.” She hums as she pets the side of Dolly’s head, the calf’s eyes shutting in gratitude. “Couldn’t save the horses though.” She adds in a whisper.

Jamie feels a pang in her chest as she opens the door to the stall, giving the calf a bit of a startle as she opens her eyes again and pulls away from the bottle to investigate. “I brought you your lunch, I figured that you must be starving.” Jamie eyes the calf carefully as she walks up to her. “Will she?”

Dani smirks. “Nah, she’s just curious, she’ll give you a sniff- cry and,” That’s just what the calf does, approaches her, smells her shirt, gives a bit of a moo before it prances back towards Dani, standing behind her, offering a loud moo this time that makes Jamie giggle a bit. “Here,” Dani offers her the bottle, “feed her and she’ll love you. Best way to get to a woman’s heart, give her food.”

“What do I do?” Jamie asks, a bit nervously as she hands the basket of food to Dani who sets it down on a stool.

“Like this.” Dani angles the bottle in Jamie’s hand until the milk starts to drip out. “She’ll come right over.”

Jamie tries to play off the sparks that ignite throughout her body when Dani’s hand covers hers. For a moment, their eyes meet and for a spilt second, Jamie becomes hyper aware of their closeness and Dani’s deep blue eyes that flick down towards her lips. She is forced back into reality when Dolly latches onto the bottle and gives it a strong tug, almost pulling Jamie off her feet. Dani lets out a breath of a laugh. “She’s strong little lady, stubborn, always wants to be the center of attention.” Dani pulls away from her and Jamie wants to whine from the loss of contact. “It’s why she is one of my favorites.” She states as she opens the basket up, her face lighting up when she spots the food inside.

“She really seems to love you.” Jamie points out, “All the animals actually, how you got into this anyways. Do all the little girls in Georgia dream of becoming a ranch hand?”

That somehow managed to give Dani a good laugh, she holds up a finger to allow her to finish chewing before she answers. “No, most of the girls in my hometown dream of beauty pageants, becoming a movie star or a stay at home mama with seven children who’s names all end in a ‘ley’. You know, Bentley, Huxley-” She pauses. “Chauncey, I don’t know, but you know, you’re a teacher. Those names that make you look at your attendance sheet and just sigh.” Dani explains as she picks up a chip from the basket. “But I can’t speak for all women in Georgia, just the small few that I grew up around.”

Jamie grins as she looks down at Dolly who had seemed to have warmed up to her. “Beauty pageants, I remember there was a show on Tv about those, you Americans and your vanity. Were you ever in one?”

Dani pauses, looks up at her and eyes her carefully. “This never leaves this room, but yes.” And Jamie can’t help it, but she bursts out in laughter. “In my defense, it was my Mama’s way of making me less of a tomboy and more of a lady and also maybe she did it to make me well, straight. Though when you are a pre-teen surrounded by a bunch of pretty girls, it backfires. Big time. Then I dropped the f bomb on stage and never did it again.” She shrugs. “Didn’t matter though, I didn’t want to become a beauty queen, I wanted to become a vet- which was almost every other girls answer about what they wanted to do when they grew up, if I think about it.”

And Jamie listens to her, her history in beauty pageants, but her mind seems to harbor on Dani’s comment. How long had Dani been out of the closet? Probably longer than her, Jamie managed to finally get out six months ago and Dani just seemed so relaxed about it. “So, you’re a lesbian?” It comes out word vomit and Jamie curses at herself. Did she have a tone in her voice? Was she being rude? But the smile that crosses Dani’s pretty lips calms her down.

“Yeah, is that a problem?” She asks slowly and Jamie shakes her head no. “Good, you never know living here. I mean I’m out and proud, but some people ain’t okay with it- it makes them uncomfortable.” She adds air quotes around the word.

“Yeah, no- I get it. I uh-” God the last time she said this out loud is caused Eddie’s death. “I’m- I,” She clears her throat, noting the amused look on Dani’s face. “I’m gay- I recently just came out, didn’t really go to well.”

“So, you’re a baby gay?” Dani muses, eyes flicking up towards her. “And I’m sorry, if you had a shitty response. Again, that’s why I prefer animals over people, no judgement.”

Jamie swallows. “Do the people here- do they, you know?”

“Who Owen, Hannah and Becca, they could care less on who you kiss, the kids don’t either. It’s Peter Quint who is the king of bigots.” Dani explains. “Just shoot near his foot if her bothers you, he’ll stop.”

“You shot his foot?” Jamie gasps and Dani shakes her head.

“Nah, shot the ground near his foot. There is a difference.”

“You bloody Americans and your guns.”

Jamie notes how Dani smiles at her with a light blush to her cheeks before they share a small laugh.

Before Jamie knows it, she’s been at Bly Ranch for two weeks and it makes her forget about London and Eddie, forget about her past and those foster homes. She’s at peace with the kids, and she feels happy in the morning when Dani waltzes into the kitchen with a raspberry to Flora’s cheek, a ruffle to Miles’ hair and a wink with a “Mornin’ Sunshine” to her

She spends a lot of her free time around Dani and Jamie thinks that Dani was one of the most attractive women she had ever seen. Dani with her tank tops and blue jeans, a cowboy hat and a cigarette hanging out of her mouth as she leans on the fence and speaks sweet words to do. It’s flirting, she knows that, they both know that, but they are just testing the waters after all.

However, the damn breaks when they get the news that Owen’s mother passed away. “Dementia.” Dani whispers to her after the funeral that Jamie had passed on while the kids make dinner. “Shit, if I ever get like that-” She looked beautiful today. Hair swept up in a French twist, some hair falling and framing her face. However, it was the dress that she was wearing a plain black dress, but Jamie couldn’t keep her eyes off her, or her legs that seemed to go miles and miles- “Sunshine? You okay?”

Jamie shakes her head, snapping herself out of her trance. “Yeah I- yeah,” She clears her throat. “Just got distracted.”

Dani hums, playful glint in her eye.

“Are you alright hun?” Hannah asks. “I know you were upset this morning; well everyone was upset but you-”

“Yes. I just- couldn’t do it. I had a funeral recently in my lifetime- I just, hope I didn’t disappoint Owen.” Jamie explains, not meeting anyone’s eye.

“Like I told you upstairs.” Dani’s voice makes her perk her head up. “It’s alright, Owen said so. You gotta take care of yourself. I hope you actually had a day off.”

Jamie nods her head, the only thing she had to do was drive Mile’s to his therapy appointment and pick him up.

“She did!” Flora spoke up. “I made sure of it, just like you asked, Miss. Dani.”

“You are a good kid, Flora Grace.”

Once the kids are tucked in bed, Jamie follows Dani out to the bonfire that Owen started. There is wine and she’s surprised to say, moonshine that makes her throat burn and her whole-body shudder.

“Dani!” Rebecca chides. “Why would you do that do a proper English woman?”

“It’s a tradition.” Dani defends, rubbing Jamie’s back soothingly. “Should have warned you, huh?”

Jamie looks up at her, her eyes a bit watery. “Can’t moonshine make you go blind?”

“That would be bad moonshine.” Owen slurs. “And if you are insisting that I would make bad moonshine then-” He pauses. “Well I forgot what I was going to say.”

“Just go with the wine.” Dani sooths as she takes the mason jar out of Jamie’s hands. “We’ll ease you into it.”

They talk a bit about life and death and Owen’s speech about his mom, well it breaks Jamie. It makes her feel that terrible guilt she had been holding onto, about Eddie. Dani, amazing Dani picks it up and gives her a nudge. “Wanna go for a walk.”

Jamie breathes because she thought that she’d never ask.

They settle on a bench under the large gazebo that was close to the pond. Jamie liked it there, it’s were she came to watch the sunrise, or she’d find Dani there on her breaks. “So I can tell by the look on your face that something is bothering you, I mean you don’t have to talk about it but-”

Jamie shudders as she takes a deep breath. “I- no I’m not okay.” She admits and Dani nods. “I suppose I told you about my fiancé?”

“Yeah,” Dani clears her throat. “Yeah, that dude from London.”

“Well, yeah he’s- he’s dead, he died.” Jamie blurts out and then catches Dani’s gaze, her eyes full of concern. “We um, we grew up together. I think his mom felt bad for me? I was in the foster care system and he was the only kid that saw past that. So, I kinda latched on to him and his family and they latched on to me. Always told me that I’d marry Eddie one day even though it didn’t feel right, being with Eddie. We started dating when we were twelve, got engaged when we were 18 and the whole time all I could think was how it didn’t feel right, that if I just stuck it out- but I couldn’t do it and it took me eight more years until I just snapped. I kept putting off the wedding until Eddie finally asked me about it and I told him, next thing I know he snaps, we break up, he goes to storm out of the car and gets hit by a bus.” Jamie lets it all out, she has to, she never told anyone what really happened and Dani, she looks shocked. “We broke up and he died.”

“Shit, Jamie? All that happened in the same night?” Dani asks softly.

Jamie nods. “I just- I feel so guilty about it. Maybe if I just stuck it out a bit longer then maybe he wouldn’t- I didn’t have the heart to tell his mum.”

“Jamie,” Dani speaks slowly, softly. “It’s not your fault, do you understand? It was not your fault. His reaction was his reaction, you couldn’t have predicted it. You did what was best by you, I’ve seen women, repressed and so fucking unhappy because of what is expected of them. You-”

Jamie doesn’t let her finish because that was all she needed to hear. Dani’s words trail off as Jamie presses her lips against hers. It starts out slow, chaste, Dani carefully moving her hands to cup her face. She breaks it only for a moment and asks. “Are you sure?”

Is she sure, Jamie spent her whole life promising herself another day, another night, she was so sure. “Yes.”

And Dani smiles a ten-watt smile. “Thank fuck.” And Jamie giggles as their lips meet again. Now it’s desperate and Jamie burns as she wraps her hands into the soft fabric of Dani’s flannel. A moan and a sigh is coaxed out of her when she feels Dani deepen the kiss, her tongue flicking against her lips. If this is how kissing the right person felt like, Jamie doesn’t want to stop. She feels dizzy in the best way possible and with Dani’s arms wrapped around her, it just feels so right. Like this whole time, the single person who she was always supposed to be with was right here this whole time. It felt nice until that guilt rolls back up again. Eddie fills her mind, as does his mom and his brothers, they’re not happy so why should she-

Abruptly, Jamie pulls away. Tears are in her eyes and Dani, poor Dani looks so confused and hurt. “Shit.” She breathes. “Shit, I-”

“Dani-” Jamie tries, because she needs her and god knows that she wants her so bad. “Dani, listen.”

Dani swallows. “No, this is on me. I’m sorry, Jamie you were just telling me and I took advantage of that,” She stands up and now Jamie just wants to burst into tears because this is Dani and she doesn’t want to break her heart, no she wants Dani to feel the way that she makes her feel. So, Jamie reaches out, grabs her arm.

“Dani, please, it’s okay. You weren’t- you would never.” Jamie begs and damn, she shouldn’t have caught those blue eyes because there are tears hidden behind that tough exterior.

“Some other time, okay?” It’s phrased like a question, but it’s a demand and Jamie feel herself crumble as she walks away.

When she gets back to the bonfire, she spots both Dani and Rebecca attempting to help a drunk Owen towards the house and Dani looks back at her. “It’s okay.”

No, no it wasn’t okay, none of this was okay. Her mind goes back to the week after Eddie’s funeral and how one of his family members spoke about grief counseling. So, she sets her mind to that and it’s the first thing she does the next day, calls Mile’s therapy office to see if they could recommend someone, anyone. She needs to let go, she needed to heal and she couldn’t be held back anymore by that invisible force that was Eddie.

A month passes and Dani keeps her space. The ranch hand figures that she needed to give the au pair time, she heard from Rebecca that Jamie was attending grief counseling. Rebecca, the ever nosy person she was had become a dog with a bone the night of the bonfire. Dani swore that woman could pick up on anything and she does pick up on Dani’s swollen lips and flushed face and concluded that Dani had finally made her move, only to be shocked when Dani told her it was Jamie and they had to put in on pause, just for now. Dani still sees her around the farm, at the dinner table, when she takes Flora and Miles for their riding lessons and they talk, however that kiss is always hanging between them because Dani had never kissed someone the way she kissed her or never felt the way she felt for Jamie. The kids pick up the change in their behavior as does Rebecca and the rest of the staff and Rebecca is relentless.

“It’s been a month you know, a month and a day since you shared that moment with Jamie.” Rebecca informs her, not even backing off when Dani shoots her a glare. “C’mon Dani, she said it herself, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

Dani is checking on Charlotte’s horse, the late Mrs. Wingrave’s Arabian mare, Viola, was pregnant. It had been Dominic that made the call to breed her so Flora could have her own pony. The animal was in a constant state of annoyance being that it was close to her due date. “Drop it, Becca.”

“Seriously, Dani- she still looks at you like you hung the freaking moon and follows you around like a love sick puppy. Open yourself up to her.” Rebecca is leaning on the stall door, far away enough so Viola couldn’t do any damage. She really only let Dani around her now a days. “You know she’s going to grief counseling, right?”

Dani pulls away for Viola’s nuzzle and looks over at her. “She is?”

“Yeah, she’s been going for a month, D.” Rebecca fills her in. “You’d know that if you weren’t acting like a brat.”

“I’m not acting like a brat, Rebecca- I was giving her space.” Dani defends herself, stopping when she realized that she sounded like a bratty middle school child- like Miles.

Rebecca grins widely and Dani sighs. “Yeah and she really likes you and C’mon D, you deserve happiness. You’re always looking out for me or the kids, Hannah- Owen. Give it a chance. She’s not like the women around here.”

Dani was going to ask her out, but Jamie beats her to it. Jamie knows all the places where Dani goes to escape, and Dolly’s stall was one of them. There is a faint knock on the wooden frame and Dolly goes nuts, prancing about and Dani doesn’t look up to see who it is, there is only one other person who Dolly would ever give that response to, Jamie.

Her back in towards the afternoon sun which makes her glow, makes her even more beautiful. She’s taken to farm fashion as she called it once after Hannah noticed the difference. She has a pair of jeans on, boot socks and knee-high boots along with a pale pink sweater. There are two steaming mugs in her hand. “Hey,” Jamie breathes. “I was wondering if you needed company. Bex said it was getting busy around here, with winter coming so that’s why you’ve been MIA lately. So, I thought, you could maybe use a cuppa.”

“A cuppa what?” She can’t help the sly grin at Jamie’s eye roll. “As long as it’s not your version of iced tea, then yes.”

She laughs and Dani’s heart skips a beat, she looks better, lighter, like that weight she had been feeling had been lifted off of her shoulders. “I’ve missed you, I mean I know you’ve been around but-”

“-Yeah.” Dani agrees. “I know, I’ve missed you too.”

Jamie beams so radiantly that again Dani melts. “I was thinking that maybe we could start over because- well, I don’t like the way we left things, back under the gazebo.”

“And how did we leave it?” Dani asks, a raised brow.

“Wrong, so wrong.” Jamie sighs. “Listen, Dani. I like you, a lot and my god, I don’t want to screw it up. So I was thinking maybe we could go on a proper date, maybe a pub or-”

Dani leans back. “Last time we drank, it didn’t end well.” She reminds her and Jamie cringes. “How about this? You let me plan something for-”

“Tonight,” Jamie interrupts. “Please.”

“Alright, tonight. Let me surprise you with something, just get Hannah or Rebecca to watch Satan’s little Helpers.”

“Dani” Jamie warns playfully.

“Fine, have one of those two watch the kids and we can make a night of it.” Dani tries to remain smooth, but she wants to jump out of her skin in excitement. “Just wear pants, no dress and I’ll see you at 7:30.”

As on cue, Jamie is being called by Flora and she watches as the blonde woman nods happily. “7:30, amazing, I’ll see you then. Wait, where are we meeting?”

“Front porch.”

“Okay them 7:30, front porch, wear pants.”

“One more thing, Sunshine, I’m really proud of ya.” And Dani doesn’t miss that lovely smile on her face as she turns around and walks away.

Dani’s freaking out on the inside, even as she plays it cool, walking up towards the front porch with a flashlight after almost having a meltdown in front of Rebecca. She told Rebecca that she was going to lay it all out tonight, let Jamie know what she was getting into. Because if she lays it all out and is honest, there is no surprises and that way she’ll know, and she can decide.

Jamie’s waiting on the porch and god is she a vision, her hair in loose curls and a splash of make up on her face. Dani knows she smitten, she knows that every time she see’s this woman, her breath is taken away. “I’m ready for my grand adventure.” She beams and Dani takes her hand, loving the way their fingers laced together so perfectly.

They don’t really talk as Dani leads her to the barn and Jamie looks a bit confused before Dani starts talking. “So, I have a confession to make.”

“You’re a serial killer and this is my last day on earth?” Jamie teases and Dani scoffs, giving her a playful nudge as they near the horses.

“While that might be a more exciting option, no- you know I love animals, but what you don’t know is that I am a die-hard horse girl.” Dani confesses and Jamie throws her head back in laughter. “Oh yeah, when I was a kid, I had those blue-ribbon horse toys and those shirts with rhinestone horses on them. If you are in a car with me, and I see a horse, you are damn right I will make you stop so I can see said horse- I just, they’re great you know. They have this sense about people, like they can tell the good from the bad- and they’re honest, loyal. They put as much trust in you as you put in them, it’s a fifty-fifty sort of relationship, so I was thinking.” She turns the corner and emerges with two horses. “This lady you met on your first day here. Her name is Moonflower and this gal right here is Lily. There uh- well they’re bonded, I personally think it’s a little more than that. I got them together, Moonflower is a mustang- wild and unpredictable and Lily is a rocky mountain horse- she cool and relaxed. I tried separating them when I first got them, and Moonflower tried to take a chunk out of me. They are tethered and I figured if two male penguins are, they why not two female horses. I was thinking though, that maybe you and me could go on a ride and talk, see where that leads us. Have you ever road a horse before?” Dani asks and Jamie shakes her head. “Well, then I’ll give you Lily, she’ll guide you.”

She helps Jamie onto her horse first and tells her how to sit, how to hold the reigns, the basics before she effortlessly throws a leg over Moonflower and climbs on. “Don’t worry, Lily will follow.” She gives a click of her tongue and a gentle pat to her side before the mustang begins to trot, Lily right by her side. Dani is thankful for the bright moon and clear night because this is the most romantic thing she can think of and she can’t tear her eyes away from Jamie who had been looking up at the stary night sky as they walk the trail. “It’s so beautiful.” Jamie breathes. “I can’t believe that you grew up under this sky.”

Dani takes a breath; it was now or never. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” The horse bump together slightly, their tails swishing together. “I want to be honest with you, put it all out there like you did for me because I like you and I want to lay everything out so you can decide on whether this is worth it or you want to run for the hills.”

“Dani,” Jamie tries, and Dani shakes her head.

“No, I, want to tell you. I uh, well I have baggage, a lot of it.” She starts off, allowing the horse to take the lead of the trail. “I’m an only child, a product of a one-night stand and a shot gun wedding. My mom, Karen hated the outcome and turned to drinking and my dad left for a carton of milk and never came back. I practically raised myself, had to because Karen was a fucking mess and is bringing all these random men home. I had to deal with them and their leering gazes and inappropriate comments, it got worse as I got older and I spent more and more time away from home. I got angry real easy, lost my temper a lot, turned to booze and drugs because ‘fuck just let me feel something’. Ran away to Savanah at 16, got into a shit crowd, fell in love with this whirlwind of a woman, she was 18 and I thought she loved me, but she used me. I looked innocent, no one would suspect this sweet little brunette with baby blue eyes to steal their shit, but I did because that was my job. I worked, sold hard drugs, pick pocketed anything to make her happy. However, when I was caught, she wasn’t there, and it took me some time to realize that she and her gang were using me. I was sent to Juvenile Hall where they tried to call my Mama, but she decided to make me a ward of the state, couldn’t handle my bullshit. I was a fuckin’ ass my first few months there which gained me more time until my counselor decided to put me with the animals. I did my year there and when I turned eighteen I was switched to the minimum security women’s prison, I had a small group of friends there that pretty much encouraged me to become the best I could be, I worked hard, got my GED, kept at it in the work program and got out on ‘good behavior’ aka overcrowding.”

She steals a glance over at Jamie and searched her face for judgement, or fear, but there was nothing, just a sadness in her eyes, so she keeps going. “So now I’m out and have no where to go, no one to go to and fuck I was so determined to not be another statistic. So, I start interviewing and no one wants some twenty-two-year-old mess of an ex-criminal until Charlotte Wingrave came along. Her and Dom, they took me instantly under their wing. Gave me a job and a home and became that family I was always looking for. I took to the animals instantly, because animals- horses, they come to you with this past and you help them get through whatever trauma you got them from and they’re grateful for it. They give you all this trust in the world and they won’t break your heart. Though Charlotte helped me realize that people can be worth it too, she became my big sister until she got sick. Miles found her one morning on the porch, dead in the rocker and then I found Miles. We both went into ourselves after that, I took to the animals again, Miles gets himself in trouble, but then you came along and brought back that light that left. That bit of sunshine we were all missing, and you made me realize again that it’d be worth it, to have someone. So yeah, that’s it- that’s me in a nutshell. I wanted you to know because I know you were struggling, still are struggling and it’ll take a while, but you’ll get there.”

Jamie is silent but attempting to control the horse to get closer to her. Her eyes narrow for a moment and then she gets Lily close enough and leans forward and Dani holds her breath for a moment until Jamie’s lips brush against hers. They break apart, meet each other’s eyes and Dani smiles before she leans in again, desperate to feel her kiss again.

They ride back in a comfortable silence and Dani settles the horses back into their stall. She looks over her shoulder to see Jamie watching her intently. Once she closes the door of the stall, she traps the other woman between the wall and kisses her again, moaning as she sighs into her mouth. Jamie’s hands snake under Dani’s, feeling the skin of her stomach under her soft hands. She leaves fire in her trail and Dani hums. “You wanna go back to my place?” Dani asks carefully and Jamie pulls back, biting her lip and nodding her head and they barely making it, stealing kisses as they make their way back to the trailer, Dani is so eager that they could just fall into the grass and that would work just fine.

However, she is glad for the bed that they collapse into, both giggling into each other’s neck. Dani knew it was Jamie’s first time with a woman and doesn’t expect much after Jamie falls apart with her fingers and tongue but is gladly surprised when she flips them and says. “Tell me what you like.” And Dani almost comes apart at her husky voice and her accent that sounded rough after a good time in bed.

They both lay in bed after a while, spent and catching their breath, Dani wrapped so securely in Jamie’s arms. Dani doesn’t want to fall asleep because she doesn’t want this night to end, however between pure exhaustion and Jamie’s fingers dragging along her forehead, she’s out and it’s the best sleep she had in a long time.

Dani wakes up first to see the blonde woman still nestled in her bed when she turns around in her arms and already awake. “I’m sorry,” Jamie whispers. “I hope I didn’t wake you.”

Honestly, Dani had an internal alarm clock and the rooster outside didn’t make matters better. “No, you didn’t.”

“Last night was- we can do that, again right?” Jamie’s cheeks flush a bright pink. “Not just the way we ended it, but the date, we can do that again?”

Dani smiles a toothy smile and leans in, kissing her again. “As long as you’ll have me, any time, Sunshine.”

And god if Jamie is just what Dani needed in her life, her mish mosh of a family claim they have never seen her so happy and they’re right because Dani had never been so happy in her life, because she had never been in the right kind of love before and this feeling with Jamie? It was the right kind of love.

And she tells Jamie on Christmas eve, they are sitting by the huge tree in the farmhouse watching the kids choose a single present to open in matching pajamas, Hannah’s idea for a nice picture. Miles was almost a different kid, he began accepting his mother’s death and hadn’t had an incident in months and Dani couldn’t help it when the words escape her mouth, but is pleasantly surprised when Jamie lets out a small giggle and says. “I love you too.”

And Dani sighs happily as she melts into her girlfriend’s kiss before Flora jumps into their laps, followed by Miles. Finally, both women managed to find what they were looking for their whole lives, a family and the right kind of love.

Because some day, Jamie would propose to Dani with the help of Dolly and someday they would get married surrounded by the people who loved them the most and one day, they would add another addition to their found family in another Christmas photo in another pair of matching, corny pajamas.


End file.
